Shoe last



Nov. 19, 1929. c. MILLER 1,736,545

SHOE LAST Filed March 16, 1928 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 19', 192g UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CHARLES MILLER, or LQNG ISLAND cI'rY, NEW Yom:

SHOE LAST Application med lai-ch 16, 1928.

It is well known, that due to the hammeri ing and pounding to which the lasts are subjected during the shoe manufacturing process, such lasts are considerabl mutilated at the rea-r portion thereof. onsiderable breakage of lasts also results from this treatment.

Heretofore, it has been proposed to provide the lastwith a protective member of a hard material 'at the top and rear portions thereof, in order to minimize breakage. For this purpose I have found a fibre board material. which is harder than the wood used in the manufacture of lasts, to be most satisfactory. While this material is hard and tough, yet it is dented, scarred, and somewhat deformed by impact on a hard surface. Also, in the manufacturing process of shoes it is important to have the distance from the upper portion of the rear edge of the last to the point where the vamp contacts with the inste accurate to a small fraction,

of an inch. light variations in this distance results in an improper fit of the shoe. 3-0 If this distance is too small it is likely to cause cutting of the foot at the instep or at the lower rear partlof the ankle of the wearer. AOn the other hand if this distance is too great, the shoe wrinkles and bulges in a manner which makes it very undesirable and unsightl Constant poundin andhammering 0 the lasts results in de ormation there of particularly at the rear portion, resulting in variations of the aforesaid distance. 4 .It is therefore anaobjgct of my invention i to provide a last with"a protective portion whlch minimizes breakage and mutilation of the last.

And it is a further object of my invention' 5 to (provide a last which enables more exact proper t of the shoe during the manufacturing processes.

These and other objects of the invention.

will be readily a parent to those skilled in the 5 art-from the following description taken in Serial No. 262,072.

connection with the 4accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is side elevation partly in section of a last embodying my invention.

Figs. 2 and 3 are fragmentary views of the 55 rear portion of lasts of my invention.

Referring in detail to Fig. 1 the last 10 is seen to comprise a protective 'cap orlayer 11 provided with a downwardly extending por- 00 tion 11a. v The cap is formed of a material harder than wood. I have found.fibre board most suitable for this purpose but any other suitable material may be used Without departing from the spirit of this' invention. 65 An insert 12 of Wood may be provided to receive the tacks in the lasting operation. Between the cap and the wood of the last proper owing modifications lI place layers 13, 14 and 15 of leather or other resilient material, the layer being held 7 in place in any suitable manner. The layers 13 and 15 serve to absorb strains on the last which are exerted by forces acting in a direction from top to bottom. The layer 14 serves to absorb strains in the last exerted in a direction lon itudinally thereof. By virtue of the absorin'g layers the protective cap is not deformed by the` stresses imposed upon the last during the shoe manufacturing rocesses. Also, the portion of the last which is cut out -to receive the cap is not chipped or broken.

, In the vmodification of Fig. 2 I have shown the cap 11 as being disposed at the rear portion only and not extending forwardly as 85 shown in Fig. 1. Otherwise the structure of Fig. 2 is the same as that of Fig'. 1, except for the elimination of the insert 12 which is not an essentialelement in either case.

In Fig. 3 I have shown another modification of the invention which has the same structure a's Fig. 2 except that the layer 15 is omitted.

4Having Ithus described my invention I g5 claim.:

1. A wooden last for shoes, a protective cap attached to the top of the heel portion of said last, and a layer of resilient material between said cap and said last and disposedin a direction substantially normal to the longitudinal Aexis of the last.

2. A Wooden last for shoes, a protective es, attached to the top of the heel portion of sai 5 last, a. layer of resilientmaterial extending longitudinally of the last and disposed between the last and said cap, and a. layer of resilient material extending transversely of the last and substantially at right angles to 10 the heel seat thereof between the last and Said cap' CHARLES MILLER 

